Cocktails

Anne Koedt
NewYork

Some male reactions to keep women's consciousness down:

The Laugh: Dismissing the issue without even discussing
it. This puts all the burden of proof on you.

Your Fault-It's your
personal problem.
Not a social, political one. "Something in your life must have
screwed you all up so you hate men. See a psychiatrist. This is
the technique of trying to isolate you.

Women are 'Different':
The separate but-equal
argument based upon biological data. "You're not inferior, just
different. I love women. " This technique uses physiology, which
obviously' cannot be changed, as proof positive of the validity
of the status quo. Most oppressed groups in the world have some
physiological argument tacked on to them.

Women's rights were won
40 years ago: Recognizes the problem as a past one,
but denies that it still exists.

The Male Liberal: "I'm all for it, but what about the children,
etc, " The technique works to agree there's a "problem,
then tries to steer you back to the traditional role by specific
guilt manipulations,

The Super-Feminist: Having accepted the issue
superficially
or actually, but still needs to one-up you. So he becomes the
super feminist, moralizing to you about how you haven't quite made it
yet, etc. Helping the little woman with her problem, This maintains
the
control over the process and also intimidates the woman.

Seducer: Having been unable to argue or intimidate the woman, he tries
to
re-establish the conventional role by having sex with her,
It's a conquest. This
area is very subtle, since he may agree with you verbally,
may recognize you as a formidable, strong woman, etc, , but that
just makes the
conquest all the more challenging.

Women Don't Want Freedom:.
The oppressor turns on the oppressed, blames her for her own
oppression. Since one can always find

Aunt Toms, scared women, etc. , this argument
can seem real if one does not distinguish between who is the victim
and who is the perpetrator.

I'll Accept Women's Freedom if. .:
women will go to Vietnam, pay alimony, etc. This is a very intimidating
tactic
because it is a threat that if women want to free them -selves
the few privileges they have will be taken away from them.

She's
Only a Feminist
Because She's a Bitch Who Can't Get a Man: And you don't want
to be like that, do you? Third person son tactic used to persuade
women
that the worse thing that could happen to them is to lose their oppressors.

Zip Code

The "Political Programme of Viet Nam Alliance
of National, Democratic and Peace Forces" recently received
from the NLF office in Czechoslovakia, has a provision in it pledging "to
enforce equal rights, political, economic, cultural and social, for
men and women. " The United States Declaration of Independence
says only that "all men are created equal."

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Our best to Lenny Heller for his consistently disgusting
reporting for the San Francisco Express Times. (see 10/68 issue of
VWLM)

FALLEN WOMEN (From P. 3) Every three months I received a new group of women. I would talk
about the aesthetics of the 20th century--the new imagery of speed,
light gleaming chrome, polished, throbbing machinery, the rhythm
of expressways and the Jefferson Airplane. They would sit politely,
smoothing the cloth over their bellies, and then proceed mindlessly
to carve and color their fear totems, their butterflies and their
flowers. (Cont. on P. 6)///////////////////////////////